Content We Love: A Masterful News Hook

The press release we’re highlighting today stood out for two reasons. Titled “Startups Advise Obama: Focus on Taxes and Talent as Second Term Begins,” and issued by Silicon Valley Bank to promote their new Startup Outlook Report, the press release makes masterful use of timing, on the even of President Obama’s second inauguration, and it includes a data-packed infographic. It’s timely, relevant and visual. It just went out today, but we’re expecting this one to perform extremely well.

We’ve talked about newsjacking on this blog before, and while I wouldn’t say that this story qualifies per se — a newsjack is an extremely fast and focused response to a trending story, in which an organization is able to insert itself into the swelling conversation and coverage due to its response — we have to applaud the Silicon Valley Bank on the timing of this campaign, and the relevance of the hook. We’ll see a lot of stories about the inauguration this week (in fact we are, see our Obama Inauguration press release page). What we like about this one is not just its timing, but its extreme relevance to the issues of the day, and the fresh perspective it offers.

The headline also deserves a shout out. It’s pithy and gets right to the heart of the press release content. If you have any interest in the American economy, you’d be hard pressed not to click on that headline and read. It’s compelling, and not because it’s coy. It implies the presence of facts within the press release, and the press release itself delivers on that promise.

And finally, there’s the infographic to consider and admire. It packs a lot of information into a streamlined visual that conveys key data quite literally at a glance. Readers love visuals, and this is a good one.

So kudos to the communications team at Silicon Valley Bank. They made an already compelling story nearly irresistable with solid writing, excellent timing and a beautiful visual.